Gemini Observations of Disks and Jets in Young Stellar Objects and in Active Galaxies

We present first results from the Near-infrared Integral Field Spectrograph (NIFS) located at Gemini North. For the active galaxies Cygnus A and Perseus A we observe rotationally-supported accretion disks and adduce the existence of massive central black holes and estimate their masses. In Cygnus A we also see remarkable high-excitation ionization cones dominated by photoionization from the central engine. In the T-Tauri stars HV Tau C and DG Tau we see highly-collimated bipolar outflows in the [Fe II] 1.644 micron line, surrounded by a slower molecular bipolar outflow seen in the H_2 lines, in accordance with the model advocated by Pyo et al. (2002).Comment: Invited paper presented at the 5th Stromlo Symposium. 9 pages, 7 figures. Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Scienc

Geographical and temporal distribution of SARS-CoV-2 clades in the WHO European Region, January to June 2020

We show the distribution of SARS-CoV-2 genetic clades over time and between countries and outline potential genomic surveillance objectives. We applied three available genomic nomenclature systems for SARS-CoV-2 to all sequence data from the WHO European Region available during the COVID-19 pandemic until 10 July 2020. We highlight the importance of real-time sequencing and data dissemination in a pandemic situation. We provide a comparison of the nomenclatures and lay a foundation for future European genomic surveillance of SARS-CoV-2.Peer reviewe

Factors Associated with Revision Surgery after Internal Fixation of Hip Fractures

Background: Femoral neck fractures are associated with high rates of revision surgery after management with internal fixation. Using data from the Fixation using Alternative Implants for the Treatment of Hip fractures (FAITH) trial evaluating methods of internal fixation in patients with femoral neck fractures, we investigated associations between baseline and surgical factors and the need for revision surgery to promote healing, relieve pain, treat infection or improve function over 24 months postsurgery. Additionally, we investigated factors associated with (1) hardware removal and (2) implant exchange from cancellous screws (CS) or sliding hip screw (SHS) to total hip arthroplasty, hemiarthroplasty, or another internal fixation device. Methods: We identified 15 potential factors a priori that may be associated with revision surgery, 7 with hardware removal, and 14 with implant exchange. We used multivariable Cox proportional hazards analyses in our investigation. Results: Factors associated with increased risk of revision surgery included: female sex, [hazard ratio (HR) 1.79, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.25-2.50; P = 0.001], higher body mass index (fo

Characterisation of two splice variants of a novel serine protease expressed in steroidogenic tissues

During the search for the serine protease that cleaves pro-gamma-melatropin to stimulate adrenal growth (Bicknell et al, Cell, 2001, 105: 903), we identified another novel protease which we called AmP. In situ hybridisation detected AmP transcripts in steroidogenic tissues such as the brain particularly in the PVN and the dentate gyrus, in leydig cells of the testis, in underdeveloped follicles in the ovary as well as in the adrenal cortex. Full length cloning identified two splice variants differing by a 222 nucleotide insertion in the 5' end of the short variant. The shorter variant codes for a 371 amino acid protein of 40.7kDa and computer analysis predicts it to be targeted to the cytosol while the longer 445 amino acid protein of 48.4 kDa is mitochondrial. Cellular targeting was confirmed by tagging with GFP. Using RT-PCR, the short variant was detected in the brain, adrenal, ovary, but not in the testis or placenta while the long variant was expressed in all of these tissues. Moreover, AmP-long was highly expressed in the brain in comparison with AmP-short. In situ hybridisation showed the expression of both variants across the whole adrenal cortex but not the medulla or the outer capsule. Due to the mitochondrial localisation of the long variant of the protease and its expression in steroidogenic tissues, it may be expected to be involved in the steroidogenic pathway, possibly by cleaving StAR or its homologue MLN64. We investigated this by co-transfecting the two variants with StAR or MLN64 and F2 plasmid (Harikrishna et al, DNA and Cell Biol, 1993,12:371) into Cos-1 cells and measuring the effect on pregnenolone production. The results suggest that neither AmP variant affects steroidogenesis nor cleaves StAR as shown by western immunoblot